


Let it Snow

by wonderlandstreasurechest



Series: Merry and Bright [1]
Category: Power Rangers, Power Rangers Jungle Fury
Genre: Gen, Reunions, Team as Family, holiday fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-17
Updated: 2014-12-17
Packaged: 2018-03-01 21:09:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2787872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wonderlandstreasurechest/pseuds/wonderlandstreasurechest
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fran and Dominic return to JKP just in time for the holidays. Theo wonders why he’s always the last to know everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Let it Snow

**Author's Note:**

> Originally, I had planned on writing 12 Christmas shorts each centering on a winter / Christmas song, and assembling them into a collection called “12 Days of Christmas Carols” but, it is December 16 and I have actually only written two. I may finish more, but for now, please enjoy~
> 
> Song- Let it Snow  
> Season- Post-Jungle Fury  
> “But as long as you love me so, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!”

“Get in here! You’re going to freeze!” Lily called, struggling to hold the door to Jungle Karma Pizza open against fierce winds and a surprisingly biting cold. Although she was dressed warmly—not one, but two shirts under her apron and a thick, fleecy yellow jacket over that—the recently chilling weather was not at all to her liking. She looked out past a misty cloud of snow that disguised the pair of shadows making their way towards her.

“We’re coming, okay?” Dom shouted back, handing Fran a small suitcase from the back of his jeep and taking a larger one under his own arm. The wind gusted up, pushing Fran’s small frame back a few steps, but Dom was there behind her, keeping her steady as they made their way towards Lily and the door.

As the pair made their way into the parlor, Lily let the door slam with the force of the wind outside. Fran looked up, pushing her disheveled hair from her face and surveyed the dining room, which lacked customers entirely. She found that nearly every surface was wrapped in green, orange and purple twinkle lights, which weren’t exactly Christmas-y, but at least RJ had given it a shot.

“Tell them we’re closed!” A voice rang out from the kitchen.

“Love you, too, Theo!” Dom shouted back, setting his down his suitcase, removing his knit hat, and peeling off his gloves. There were muffled sounds of pans dropping in the sink as the swinging door thrust open. Theo stood for a moment, disbelief and glee on his face, as well as a few smudges of flour from a long day of pizza making.

“Dom! Fran!” He smiled, making his way over for hugs. “I don’t believe it!”

“Believe it, Theo,” Fran smiled, pulling out of her hug, and unzipping her coat. “Merry Christmas!”

Theo hadn’t seen them face-to-face since they left to go backpacking at the end of the summer. He’d missed Fran around the store, because as hard as Flit tried to be “New Fran”, no one was as good at multitasking as she was. Even Dominic’s crazy antics had left a hole in the JKP atmosphere, as much as Theo hated to admit it.

In their absence, he’d found himself looking forward to Tuesdays when, like clockwork, a postcard from Fran found its way to the loft. For the minute or two it took to read them, he had felt Fran was in the loft and Dominic in his Dominic way, had always added a cramped post script that was too short. Hello from Hamburg _(P.S. Got some really great books!)_ , Missing you in Madrid _(P.S. I can’t play Spanish guitar. I tried.)_ , Best Wishes from Barcelona _(P.S. The pizza has nothing on yours, RJ!)_. But the two of them, in the flesh? It was so much better than a postcard.

Lily smiled sweetly as Dominic hugged her sideways and Theo realized that she didn’t seem half as surprised as he was.

“Lil, did you know about this?” He tried to sound upset, but found it impossible with to his excitement at seeing Fran and Dom.

“Guilty,” Lily smiled back, pecking Theo’s flour smattered cheek with a kiss. “But, RJ knew too, so don’t think it was just me.”

Fran looked around for signs of RJ, but he was nowhere to be found. There was someone else she was expecting who seemed to be missing, too. “Is Casey here, yet?”

“Casey’s coming over, too?” Theo spun around towards the kitchen, the only thoughts on his mind of throttling his boss for withholding all this exciting information from him.

Dominic, realizing Theo’s intent, reached out and pulled him back. “Slow down, there, Theo. You haven’t even told me about how the store’s been doing, Mr. Manager.”

“Business has never been better! I’m not saying it’s because RJ let me get this place more organized, but—” Theo took the opportunity to spout out all sorts of figures about the sales since the summer. Dom put on his best ‘no-really-I’m-interested’ face and sighed internally. He hadn’t realized what he’d just let himself walk into, and made a mental note to let RJ pay him back later.

“Casey snuck upstairs about fifteen minutes ago when Theo was taking out the garbage,” Lily explained to Fran. “They’re on the phone with Master Finn, I think.”

“Why didn’t you tell Theo that we were coming?”

Lily draped her arm over Fran’s shoulder and began to lead her into the kitchen and up the stairs. Dom and Theo followed after, but Theo never let his constant flow of information halt. “And miss the cute way he gets when he’s been caught off guard? Never!”

“Do I hear a couple of cubs down there?” Casey’s playful voice rang down the staircase as the group made their way up. “I do!” He greeted each of them with another hug and a kiss for Fran and Lily’s cheeks.

“Fran, how was Verona?” Casey asked, with a knowing smile.

“Alright.” She answered modestly, with a small blush. She knew Casey was teasing her about that one overly enthusiastic postcard, but she had been really excited when she’d sent it. Very Exciting News from Verona! _(P.S. I already told her to breathe, don’t worry.)._ But, it wasn’t every day that Dominic asked her to move in with him when they got back home.

“Is RJ up here?” Lily asked looking around the loft.

“Daddy issues.” Casey shrugged looking over his shoulder towards RJ’s room. He decided to leave it at that, and everyone silently acknowledged that they wouldn’t talk about it when he came out. Although things had been getting better between RJ and his father, the holidays were still stressful.

“Well, he’s about to have Theo issues.” Theo said, playfully punching Casey’s ribs. “Did you know that both Lily and RJ knew that these two were back and no one told me?”

Casey laughed, pushing Theo back. “Well, I didn’t tell you either.”

“You knew?” He asked. Turning to Lily and looking betrayed, he asked again, “He knew? Casey, who never comes around anymore? _He_ knew? And even he didn’t tell me. Why am I always the last one to know everything?”

“I was under strict orders _not_ to tell you because Lily thinks you’re so cute when you don’t know things. Wait, I come around!” Casey protested, as Theo gave Lily and accusatory glare. She just giggled.

Casey turned to Fran and Dominic to defend himself. “Theo’s been a little grumpy—I mean grumpier than usual—because I had to pull myself from the schedule here. I’ve just been so busy at the academy, but you should see my cubs. Jarrod and Camille, too. They’re getting so good. Master Mao said he’s never seen a class learn so quickly.”

“Well, they’ve got a hell of a teacher,” Dominic smiled.

It was at that moment that a door in the back of the loft slammed and all five heads turned at the noise. RJ stumbled out from around the corner, appearing upset and slightly disheveled. His hair stuck up funny on one side as though he had been pulling at it. As he saw everyone lined up in the kitchen, his face suddenly became brighter and he opened his arms to his friends.

“Hey, everyone! Fran, Dom, long time no see!” His voice was cheerful, despite the way he had looked only seconds before. Fran quickly made her way into his open arms for a hug, Dominic not far behind her for a handshake. “How was your flight?”

“Well…” Dominic began.

“It was awful!” Fran exclaimed.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Dom insisted. “There was just—“

“A baby that cried the whole way, this unbearable and never-ending turbulence, a woman who laughed too loudly at the inflight movie, which, might I add, was not that funny, not to mention, they almost had to land early because of the snow and—”

“Uh, breathe, Fran.” RJ interjected with a hand on her shoulder. Fran inhaled sharply, looking exasperated at the memory of the flight.

Dominic smirked at the familiar gesture. “She said the same thing about the flight there. Fran just doesn’t like flying.”

“Can’t say I disagree,” RJ assured. “Why are you all still wearing coats? Theo, where’s your hospitality?”

Lily, Fran and Dominic all piled their coats into Theo’s arms. His eyes narrowed at RJ, who smirked at him in reply. Theo, in something of a huff, turned around to take the coats to hang in the back of the loft. A kettle whistled from the kitchen.

“Oh, that’s for me!” RJ exclaimed, rushing to the stove. There, he removed the kettle from the burner, placing it on a hot pad. He began to take mugs from the cupboard and place them along the counter. “Cocoa, anyone?”

“Yes, please!” Fran smiled, before turning to Dom. “I’m so glad we’re back.”

“Me, too.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek.

“We’re glad to have you back.” RJ said, pouring the hot water over the cocoa mix and handing out mugs. “It’s been too long since we were all together.”

“Yeah, so don’t even think of leaving before we’re caught up.” Casey said, taking the hand off of his usual mug from RJ.

“Sounds like a deal,” Dom smiled. “Besides, I wouldn’t want to go back into that storm anytime soon.”

Snow continued falling, the world outside turning white with newness, while inside the loft above Jungle Karma Pizza, there was only warmth and the familiarity of old friendships.


End file.
